Adventures in Babysitting is one of my favorite comfort movies. Looking back on it, especially since the rise of the MCU, Sarah is a fangirl ahead of her time. Only recently has a character with geeky interests been more than the butt of jokes. That certainly didn’t happen in 1987 when the movie came out, and certainly not for young girls.
Sarah is a big fan of Marvel Comics; she likes Spiderman, Daredevil, and Captain America. But her favorite superhero by far is Thor. She draws pictures of him and puts them all over her bedroom. Sarah even dresses like some sort of Thor Scout, wearing her helmet and carrying her mini-Mjolnir at all times. (She also wears a really great stranded yoke sweater that I want to knit for myself.) Sarah seems to draw confidence from her connection to Thor, to “fight the forces of darkness” and “help people,” which helps the gang during their evening on the town.
Two of the major escapes that the foursome (Sarah, her brother Brad, Brad’s friend Darryl, and the babysitter Chris) managed were thanks to Sarah. Sarah kept a cool head in a dangerous situation and was the only one who noticed the roof vent that allowed them to get the slip on the crew chasing them. Most obviously, Sarah was able to convince Thor lookalike Dawkins to give Chris back her car by telling him that Thor is her hero and “always helps people in trouble.”
Sarah also helps people with compassion. She tries to keep Brad from confessing his feelings to Chris, knowing that her brother will get his heart broken. Sarah promises Darryl that she won’t let him fall during their rooftop escape from the warehouse. She even wonders if Brenda, whose failed attempt at running away set off the evening’s events, is alright. She shows her concern even as they’re being held captive and everyone else just sees Brenda as a problem.
If, somewhere out there, exists an AU where Sarah Anderson is a real person, I hope that she never lost her love of Thor or her energy. I can see her working for, or probably founding, a charitable organization that uses fandom to help people. That, and seeing every Marvel movie on opening night.
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